Hi all,
In
some circles people are prophesying abundant prosperity to the USA and
world when Trump wins the US election, which will usher in a time when
Christians will dominate the '7 mountains' (see below for definition) in
a new era of blessing and prosperity. This comes from what is generally
called 'Dominion Theology' or 'Kingdom Now'.
I'm
getting a lot of emails asking me to comment on Dominion Theology, but
many may not even be aware such a thing exists, so let me first define
it, then next week I'll share scripture point by point on the matter.
What it is
Dominion
Theology believes Christians will take over or 'have dominion' over the
world. Though there are various 'streams' under the umbrella of
Dominion Theology, the founding belief sounds reasonable at first
glance: Adam was told to have dominion over the world in Genesis
1:26-28, but by his sin brought the world under a curse. Then Jesus came
and reversed the curse, bringing the kingdom of God into the hearts of
mankind; therefore we have Adam's mandate to have dominion over the
world and bring the kingdom to man.
Another
way to say it is that they believe God lost control over the world when
Adam sinned, and has been trying to get it back. Therefore 'prayer
warriors' praying down the kingdom and against demonic strongholds,
'covenant people', 'overcomers' and other phrases like 'Joel's army'
are used to identify this way of thinking.
As
such, they believe the rapture is merely a joyous feeling we will
experience when Jesus returns, the prophecies about Israel are actually
about the church, and therefore the kingdom comes first in the hearts of
believers, and some of those believers, the overcomers, will turn the
earth over to the Lord at His return.
Dominion
Theology believes the kingdom of God will come to the world through
Christians gradually taking over the '7 mountains' or 7 spheres of
influence.
The 7 mountains
The
7 mountains they believe Christians will take over, first in the US and
then the rest of the world, are: Religion, family, government,
education, media, business, arts & entertainment.
With
emphasis on 'apostles' in these 7 areas, those apostles being part of
the '5-fold' ministries, the idea is Christians will rise under the
leadership of these apostles in the 7 mountains to turn this world
around. Variations exist within the Dominionists, but the idea is the
'5-fold' will lead the US in a sort of democratic theocracy back to God
in a great national and then world-wide revival.
How 'apostles' function in the 7 mountains
Take
a look at those 7 mountains and let us pick one, say arts &
entertainment. Their idea is that Christian films and art will gradually
begin to infiltrate, saturate, and then be the dominant influence in
Hollywood, Broadway, and so on. Citing various Christian and
conservative artists now active in each, Dominionists can point to
apparent progress as proof their theology is correct.
In
politics the Trump candidacy with its Constitutional core values, can
be pointed to as progress, with the hopes a Trump administration will
appoint believers in Cabinet level positions to reverse years of liberal
policies, thus bringing elements of the kingdom of God to the federal
government.
In
business the hopes and prayers are for CEO's of larger companies to be
or become Christians, who will then institute conservative policies and
Christians freedoms in those companies...and on it goes.
In
this way of thinking, Trump is an 'apostle' set to influence the
mountain of government. A Christian CEO is an 'apostle' over his
company. Christian actors and producers and people of influence in
Hollywood would be 'apostles', leading Christian influence there, and so
on.
Does wanting greater Christian influence make a person a Dominionist?
Just
because someone believes Christians should rise to greater influence in
society, or the '7 mountains', doesn't make them a Dominionist. The
average Christian would love to see Christians in places of authority in
those 7 mountains in their nation - but it doesn't mean they believe we
should create a kingdom now to hand the earth over to Jesus at His
return so He can take it from there.
And
just because a pastor's sermon is about Christians being active in one
of those 7 mountains, doesn't mean he is a Kingdom Now preacher. In the
same way a person thinking about buying a certain model of car and then
suddenly notices that model all around them, there are those who zero in
on anything remotely sounding Kingdom Now, so we have to look at the
larger picture, the larger ministry, the larger message.
Modern prosperity gospel
The
reasons Dominion Theology has taken hold in the US are multi-faceted.
One is that it counters the way of thought seen in the US federal
government today, the 'liberal agenda'. Tired of having non-Christian
laws, policies, and culture forced upon a general population that
doesn't agree with that agenda, Dominion Theology is seen as the
political counter-force.
Another
is economic. A simple Internet search or by just listening to economic
news tells the story of how far the US economy has fallen in the last 8
years: 50,000,000 on food stamps, 100,000,000 not in the work force
(nearly 1/3 of the US population is not working), half of all households
in the US are receiving some form of unearned government assistance.
Recent
studies show that Americans work longer hours than any other developed
nation, with over 25,000,000 working over 49 hours per week (over 1 in 5
workers). Many of those hours are from 2 part-time jobs because of lay
offs due to the enforcement of health care laws and corporate and
personal tax increases. In 2016 the US government will take in 3.3
trillion dollars - yet still spend more than they take in.
The
US population is angry at both Republicans and Democrats and this rage
has fueled the candidacy of Donald Trump. So it is natural that the
Dominion Theology proponents would include a strong element of the
prosperity gospel in a sort of theological stew mixing in every facet of
life.
It
is this modern update to the prosperity gospel that seems to be a
driving force for many, as seen in the personal prophecies proclaiming
riches and blessings in the near future.
Any fad movement has to have prophecy to lend credibility...
'Personal
prophecies' in abundance have always been the 'stamp of approval' for
whatever the newest fad in the charismatic world happens to be. Any fad
movement bases their belief on what they think they see in the Word, but
then they need the Spirit to go along, hence the abundance of personal
prophecies.
In
the 42 or so years I've walked with the Father I've seen every single
charismatic movement also accompanied by personal prophecy that agrees
with whatever spin on the Word that 'newest move of God' presents, so
I'm not surprised to hear of all the prophecies about a new era of
abundance and peace coming to the US and world with this election cycle.
But
the question today isn't political, rather is Dominion Theology's
understanding of the Bible correct? Is this a scriptural understanding
of New Testament Christianity? Will 'overcomers' hand the world to Jesus
at His return? Does Israel matter?
And I'll pick it up there next week, until then, blessings,
John Fenn
New CD/MP3 Series
David;
King in Exile, is the 3rd of a 3 part series looking at the Psalms
David wrote at various events in his life. In this series we see the
anguish of a father whose son turns against him, and the Psalms where he
wrestled with wanting to see justice yet wanting his son saved. We see
the intrigue of David's family life and Bathsheba's grandfather, David's
closest advisor, and we see victorious David reclaiming his kingdom and
purchasing the hill top that would become the Temple Mount, the place
of Solomon's temple. And finally, at the end of his life David's Psalms
are reflective, looking to God as the Creator to whom he will soon go,
and the recounting of God's faithfulness to him down through the years.
For anyone who loves someone who isn't walking with the Lord, to one
reflecting on God's faithfulness, this series will inspire you!
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar